Letter to the editor: Tillis denounces Trump's Jan. 6 pardons

First published in the Brunswick Beacon, 01.15.26

Five years ago, Trump pressured Republicans to overturn the 2020 election. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) refused: “I will not oppose the certification of the Electoral College votes. I will not embolden politicians in the future to appoint our presidents instead of having the American people duly elect them.”

On Jan. 6, 2021, 140 law enforcement officers were injured when a violent mob of insurrectionists stormed the Capitol. Tillis said Trump’s “words and actions were reckless, and he shares responsibility for the disgrace that occurred.” Seven Republican senators and 50 Democrats voted to convict Trump of inciting the insurrection. Tillis voted against conviction because, he said, Trump was no longer president at the time.

Trump’s White House webpage says, “On his first day back in office, President Trump issued sweeping blanket pardons and commutations for nearly 1,600” people charged and convicted of the Jan. 6 attack. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called the pardons “a mistake — I fear you will get more violence.” Tillis called it “a damn shame they’re out, because nearly three dozen of them have actually been arrested for another crime since they were pardoned.”

Two of the pardoned Jan. 6 insurrectionists are charged with rape. Six are charged with child sex crimes, including sexual assault and possession of child pornography.

In North Carolina, David Paul Daniel of Mint Hill is charged with production and possession of child pornography and with molesting and taking sexually explicit photos of two children under the age of 12. He argues that Trump’s “sweeping blanket pardon” means he cannot be prosecuted on those charges.

Trump pardoned violent insurrectionists and sex offenders to whitewash his role in the Jan. 6 attack. He calls them “patriotic Americans” in an Orwellian attempt to rewrite history and shove the images we all saw down the memory hole. As Tillis said, “it’s a damn shame” that Trump’s pardons turned violent criminals loose and made us all less safe.

L. McGann

Leland